ENGLISH
REFERENCE

hover around

phr. v..
B2 Upper Intermediate Oxford General-service

phr. v.. to stay near a person or place because you are waiting for something or feel nervous.

phr. v.. to remain in the immediate vicinity of a person, place, or numerical value, often characterized by indecision, anticipation, or slight fluctuation.


SIMPLE

The waiter hovers around our table waiting for the bill.

CONTEXTUAL

I noticed a few nervous parents hovering around the school gates on the first day of term.

COMPLEX

The company's stock price continued to hover around the fifty-dollar mark despite the recent economic downturn and negative press.

Particles
around
Separability
inseparable
Pattern
hover + around + object
Usage

often implies a sense of lingering or waiting without a clear, immediate action.

Teaching tip

highlight the physical movement of 'hovering' (like a bird or helicopter) to help students visualize the lack of a fixed landing or departure.

Pitfall

He was hovering around to the kitchen.He was hovering around the kitchen.the phrase acts as a transitive unit here; do not add extra prepositions like 'to' before the location.

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